R. H. Barlow
Encyclopedia
Robert Hayward Barlow was an American
author
, avant-garde poet, anthropologist and historian
of early Mexico
, and expert in the Nahuatl
language.
Barlow spent much of his youth at Fort Benning
, Georgia
, where his father, Colonel E. D. Barlow, was stationed; around 1932 Col. Barlow received a medical discharge and settled his family in the small town of DeLand
, in central Florida
. Family difficulties later forced Barlow to move to Washington, D.C.
, and Kansas
.
and Robert E. Howard
since he was 13. He collaborated with Lovecraft on six stories, and Lovecraft made several extended visits to the young Barlow at his home in De Land,Florida. Barlow attempted to bind and distribute Lovecraft's story The Shunned House (1928) but bound only a few copies (Arkham House
distributed some bound versions of the original Barlow project as late as the 1970s). Barlow aided significantly in the preservation of Lovecraft's manuscripts by typing texts in exchange for autographed manuscripts.
At his death, Lovecraft's will named Barlow his literary executor
and Barlow came to Providence
shortly thereafter, and donated most of the manuscripts and some printed matter to the John Hay Library
of Brown University
.
- Lovecraft helped Barlow set the type for this) and The Cats of Ulthar, a story by H.P. Lovecraft.
Barlow's fiction career was interrupted in 1937 by a variety of circumstances, including the death of his friend and mentor Lovecraft, and his own uprooting from Florida because of family troubles. As late as 1938 he edited Lovecraft's Notes and Commonplace Book and in 1943 lent assistance to the first bibliography of Lovecraft (by Francis T. Laney and William H. Evans). His poignant memoir of Lovecraft, "The Wind That is in the Grass" can be found in Marginalia (Arkham House, 1944). Barlow also contributed the introduction for the 1944 Arkham House volume Jumbee and Other Uncanny Tales by his fellow Floridian and Weird Tales
author Henry S. Whitehead
.
and a distinguished anthropologist of Indian culture, as well as a poet writing both formalist verse and experimental verse of the Activist school pioneered by Lawrence Hart. In 1950 he published Mexihkatl itonalama ("The Mexican's calendar
"), a Nahuatl-language newspaper
. His work in Meso-American anthropology is of pioneering significance, and his collected anthropological papers are in the process of publication in Mexico.
Barlow had written as early as 1944 that he had "a subtle feeling that my curious and uneasy life is not destined to prolong itself". He committed suicide
on the first or second of January, 1951, apparently fearing the exposure of his homosexuality
by a disgruntled student. William S. Burroughs
, then a student of Barlow's, briefly described his death in a letter to Allen Ginsberg
, dated January 11: "A queer Professor from K.C., Mo., head of the Anthropology dept. here at M.C.C. where I collect my $75 per month, knocked himself off a few days ago with overdose of goof balls. Vomit all over the bed. I can’t see this suicide kick."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, avant-garde poet, anthropologist and historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
of early Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, and expert in the Nahuatl
Nahuatl
Nahuatl is thought to mean "a good, clear sound" This language name has several spellings, among them náhuatl , Naoatl, Nauatl, Nahuatl, Nawatl. In a back formation from the name of the language, the ethnic group of Nahuatl speakers are called Nahua...
language.
Barlow spent much of his youth at Fort Benning
Fort Benning
Fort Benning is a United States Army post located southeast of the city of Columbus in Muscogee and Chattahoochee counties in Georgia and Russell County, Alabama...
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, where his father, Colonel E. D. Barlow, was stationed; around 1932 Col. Barlow received a medical discharge and settled his family in the small town of DeLand
DeLand, Florida
DeLand is the county seat of Volusia County, Florida. In 2006, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated the city's population to be 24,375. It is part of the Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had an estimated population of 436,575 in 2006...
, in central Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. Family difficulties later forced Barlow to move to Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, and Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
.
Lovecraft associate
Barlow had been a friend of writers H. P. LovecraftH. P. Lovecraft
Howard Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....
and Robert E. Howard
Robert E. Howard
Robert Ervin Howard was an American author who wrote pulp fiction in a diverse range of genres. Best known for his character Conan the Barbarian, he is regarded as the father of the sword and sorcery subgenre....
since he was 13. He collaborated with Lovecraft on six stories, and Lovecraft made several extended visits to the young Barlow at his home in De Land,Florida. Barlow attempted to bind and distribute Lovecraft's story The Shunned House (1928) but bound only a few copies (Arkham House
Arkham House
Arkham House is a publishing house specializing in weird fiction founded in Sauk City, Wisconsin in 1939 by August Derleth and Donald Wandrei to preserve in hardcover the best fiction of H.P. Lovecraft. The company's name is derived from Lovecraft's fictional New England city, Arkham. Arkham House...
distributed some bound versions of the original Barlow project as late as the 1970s). Barlow aided significantly in the preservation of Lovecraft's manuscripts by typing texts in exchange for autographed manuscripts.
At his death, Lovecraft's will named Barlow his literary executor
Literary executor
A literary executor is a person with decision-making power in respect of a literary estate. According to Wills, Administration and Taxation: a practical guide "A will may appoint different executors to deal with different parts of the estate...
and Barlow came to Providence
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
shortly thereafter, and donated most of the manuscripts and some printed matter to the John Hay Library
John Hay Library
The John Hay Library is the second oldest library on the campus of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. Located on Prospect Street, opposite the Van Wickle Gates, it replaced the outgrown former library, now Robinson Hall, as the main library on the campus...
of Brown University
Brown University
Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,...
.
Author, publisher
Barlow was interested in printing and after becoming involved in the early 'fan' scene relating to fantasy and science fiction, published several important journals - The Dragon-Fly (two issues - Oct 15, 1935 and May 15, 1936); and Leaves (two issues - Summer 1937; Winter 1938/39). He was also proprietor of his imprint, the Dragon-Fly Press (Cassia, Florida) and under that imprint published two important works by members of the Lovecraft Circle - The Goblin Tower (the first verse collection by Frank Belknap LongFrank Belknap Long
Frank Belknap Long was a prolific American writer of horror fiction, fantasy, science fiction, poetry, gothic romance, comic books, and non-fiction. Though his writing career spanned seven decades, he is best known for his horror and science fiction short stories, including early contributions to...
- Lovecraft helped Barlow set the type for this) and The Cats of Ulthar, a story by H.P. Lovecraft.
Barlow's fiction career was interrupted in 1937 by a variety of circumstances, including the death of his friend and mentor Lovecraft, and his own uprooting from Florida because of family troubles. As late as 1938 he edited Lovecraft's Notes and Commonplace Book and in 1943 lent assistance to the first bibliography of Lovecraft (by Francis T. Laney and William H. Evans). His poignant memoir of Lovecraft, "The Wind That is in the Grass" can be found in Marginalia (Arkham House, 1944). Barlow also contributed the introduction for the 1944 Arkham House volume Jumbee and Other Uncanny Tales by his fellow Floridian and Weird Tales
Weird Tales
Weird Tales is an American fantasy and horror fiction pulp magazine first published in March 1923. It ceased its original run in September 1954, after 279 issues, but has since been revived. The magazine was set up in Chicago by J. C. Henneberger, an ex-journalist with a taste for the macabre....
author Henry S. Whitehead
Henry S. Whitehead
Rev. Henry St. Clair Whitehead was an American writer of horror fiction and fantasy.- Biography :Henry S. Whitehead was born in Elizabeth, New Jersey on March 5, 1882. He graduated from Harvard University in 1904. He led an active and worldly life, playing football at Harvard...
.
Anthropologist
Barlow moved permanently to Mexico around 1943, where he taught at several colleges, and in 1948 became chairman of the anthropology department at Mexico City CollegeMexico City College
Mexico City College was founded in 1940, as an English speaking junior college in Mexico City, Mexico.In 1946 the college switched to a 4 year Bachelor of Arts degree-awarding institution, then changed its name to University of the Americas in 1963 and in 1968 to Universidad de las Americas,...
and a distinguished anthropologist of Indian culture, as well as a poet writing both formalist verse and experimental verse of the Activist school pioneered by Lawrence Hart. In 1950 he published Mexihkatl itonalama ("The Mexican's calendar
Tonalamatl
The tonalamatl is a divinatory almanac used in central Mexico in the decades, and perhaps centuries, leading up to the Spanish conquest. The word itself is Nahuatl in origin, meaning "pages of days"....
"), a Nahuatl-language newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
. His work in Meso-American anthropology is of pioneering significance, and his collected anthropological papers are in the process of publication in Mexico.
Barlow had written as early as 1944 that he had "a subtle feeling that my curious and uneasy life is not destined to prolong itself". He committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
on the first or second of January, 1951, apparently fearing the exposure of his homosexuality
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
by a disgruntled student. William S. Burroughs
William S. Burroughs
William Seward Burroughs II was an American novelist, poet, essayist and spoken word performer. A primary figure of the Beat Generation and a major postmodernist author, he is considered to be "one of the most politically trenchant, culturally influential, and innovative artists of the 20th...
, then a student of Barlow's, briefly described his death in a letter to Allen Ginsberg
Allen Ginsberg
Irwin Allen Ginsberg was an American poet and one of the leading figures of the Beat Generation in the 1950s. He vigorously opposed militarism, materialism and sexual repression...
, dated January 11: "A queer Professor from K.C., Mo., head of the Anthropology dept. here at M.C.C. where I collect my $75 per month, knocked himself off a few days ago with overdose of goof balls. Vomit all over the bed. I can’t see this suicide kick."
Books by Barlow
- Poems for a Competition. Sacramento, CA: The Fugitive Press, 1942. (verse). For these poems Barlow received the 26th award of the Emily Chamberlain Cook Prizde in Poetry.
- View from a Hill. Azcapotzalco [no publisher given], 1947 (verse).
- The Extent of the Empire of the Culhua Mexico. [Ibero-Americana 28]. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1949.
- Annals of the Jinns. Original series in The Fantasy Fan (1933–35); collected, West Warwick, RI: Necronomicon Press, 1978.
- A Dim-Remembered Story West Warwick, RI: Necronomicon Press, 1980. Preface by H. P. LovecraftH. P. LovecraftHoward Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....
. - The Night Ocean (with H.P. Lovecraft). West Warwick, RI: Necronomicon Press, 1978, 1982; 3rd pr 1989.
- Crypt of Cthulhu No. 60 (1988) is a special issue devoted to Robert H. Barlow.
- The Battle That Ended the Century & Collapsing Cosmoses (with H.P. Lovecraft) West Warwick, RI: Necronomicon Press, 1992.
- On Lovecraft and Life. West Warwick, RI: Necronomicon Press, 1992. Contains Barlow's journal of Lovecraft's 1934 visit and his 1940s autobiography).
- The Hoard of the Wizard-Beast and One Other (with H.P. Lovecraft). West Warwick, RI: Necronomicon Press, 1994. The 'other' is the story "The Slaying of the Monster".
- Eyes of the God: The Weird Fiction and Poetry of Robert H. Barlow. NY: Hippocampus Press, 2002. A comprehensive collection which excludes only Barlow's non-fiction.
Books About Barlow
- Hart, Lawrence (ed). Accent on Barlow: A Commemorative Anthology. San Rafael, CA: Lawrence Hart, 1962.
- Berruti, Massimo. Dim-Remembered Stories: A Critical Study of R.H. Barlow (forthcoming, 2011).